All grades received under Munster Martial Arts are internationally certified by Munster Martial Arts and our affiliates in the Intercontinental Tang Soo Do Association under Grand Master Giacobbe 8th Dan Black Belt. Grand Master Giacobbe is a recognised world leader in the modern development of Tang Soo Do.

The Tang Soo Do belt system in its progression from white to midnight blue/black represents the cycle of the seasons and the educational steps of learning. Each color stands for a specific stage of achievement. In this way we realise an essential concept of Korean philosophy, i.e., that which is born must grow and learn and reach maturity. In the World system, the white belt is the first stage of learning and the black belt is a graduate.

The belt system is futher divided as follows:

Rank

Belt

Position

10th Gup

White

Beginner

9th Gup

Yellow

Beginner

8th Gup

Orange/One White Stripe

Novice

7th Gup

Orange/Two White Stripe

Novice

6th Gup

Green/One White Stripe

Intermediate

5th Gup

Green/Two White Stripe

Intermediate

4th Gup

Green/Three White Stripe

Intermediate

3rd Gup

Red/One White Stripe

Intermediate

2nd Gup

Red/Two White Stripes

Advanced

1st Gup

Red/Three White Stripes

Advanced

1st Dan

Navy Blue or Black/One Gold or White Stripe

Bo Kyo Sa Nim Asst. Instructor